The Age of Overwhelm: Strategies for the Long Haul by Laura van Dernoot Lipsky
Overwhelm happens.
A lot.
It shows up as lack of attention, need for distraction, dropped plates, angry words, bad driving, broken relationships, disordered communities, small bandages on hemorrhaging social problems with pat wording that everything will be all right.
Van Dernoot Lipsky takes her knowledge from working with those deeply enmeshed in the harder aspects of the human condition—domestic violence lawyers, social workers, international aid workers, et. al.—and makes it applicable to a wider audience.
Her introduction takes you through the framework she is working with, which involves the following items:
- identifying overwhelm
- naming what is within your control
- purposeful action on that which is in your control
After that she offers practices and ideas that contribute to a more balanced life.
“[W]hile The Age of Overwhelm will strongly suggest you do something to help you sustain for the long haul, I assure you it does not require doing everything you may be dreading. My intention is not to pile tasks on to your existing to-do list, but simply to remind you that you have options.” —van Dernoot Lipsky
Her long history working with social justice issues means she recognizes institutional injustice and the effects it has on marginalized communities. There is minimal but useful advice for how to mitigate overwhelm within those contexts.
For the audience of this book she recommends:
- a dedicated contemplative practice
- movement
- curiosity
- sleep
- body awareness
She offers practical steps to integrate these into your life.
The chapters are short and interspersed with relevant cartoons as a way to take breaks from the content. If you are an experienced somatic-based practitioner, her use of language will be familiar, and if you are not, her wording might be confusing. Not all of us know what it means to “metabolize.”
Overall the writing is uncomplicated, understandable, and clear.
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